Deviation

When the Court orders a child support or spousal maintenance amount different than what is on the Child Support Worksheet and the Spousal Maintenance Calculator. While Courts rely heavily both on the Child Support Worksheet and the Spousal Maintenance Calculator, the Court does not have to necessarily use the numbers produced by these documents. The Court must make written findings as to why it is not following the Worksheet or Calculator, including stating what the number would have been had they followed the calculation. For child support, the Court must also find the deviation is the child’s best interests. For spousal maintenance, the Court must find the application of the Guidelines would be inappropriate or unjust.